The fee that mortgage lenders charge borrowers to take out competitive loans has risen by 42pc in the past six months, according to research out this week.

As UK consumers shop around more for competitive interest rates, lenders are being forced to look at alternative ways to make some profit on their products, a report from broker Charcol found. Ray Boulger, senior technical manager at Charcol, said: "The increase in both arrangement fees and exit fees has helped them achieve this."